Shot To Hell by ceilidh
A/N:- Awww, poor Timmy! Our poor probie just can't catch a break, can he? Of course, there's even more angst for him in this chapter - but some light at the end of the tunnel, too ;o)
Chapter Ten - Big Brother 101
He'd been crying for several minutes now. Then again, Tony sadly reflected, he had a lot to cry about. The kid had almost died, so – yes, for that alone, Tim McGee had one hell of a good reason to cry - and even more need to purge it out of his system.
Finally, though, the tears stopped, allowing Tim's breathing to regain its normal, if still shaky rhythm.
A few more moments, a final hand-wipe over his eyes, and he was composed enough to push himself away – meeting Tony's anxious eyes with a faint, dazedly embarrassed smile as he settled back into his pillows.
"Yeah, Tony, I'm – I'm okay, and- jeez, where the hell did that come from?"
"Where you've just been," Tony reminded him, with the complete seriousness this moment needed - keeping that seriousness in his voice as he gave Tim's shoulder a rallying shake.
"You've been through hell, probie. You almost died. You had to expect... well, some kind of reaction."
"Yeah, I'm kinda making a habit of those," Tim retorted dryly, pulling a suitable face to go with it.
Beyond its ruefulness, though, there was also real gratitude in the soft, shy words that followed.
"Speaking of which, Tony, I – I haven't thanked you yet, for the- um… well, you know, what you did, when I- um…"
Oh, this was great. Two degrees, a genius level IQ – and he still couldn't manage a simple thank-you.
Luckily, to Tim's silent gratitude, Tony could still understand hopelessly tongue-tied gibberish. Then again, he'd had plenty of practice. A grin that promised no end of teasing payback told him that.
"Hey, McGoo, it comes with the job. And I'm the senior agent, so I'm allowed," Tony said at last – giving this long running joke between them a typically ingenious, if rather unrealistic twist.
"You're my probie, probie - and if anyone's gonna keep your rowdy butt in line, it's gonna be me."
Tim McGee's dinner-plated eyes swung up, yet again, to his IV. Damn meds. What the hell were they giving him?
His butt in line? And rowdy? No wonder he now stared back at his friend in such disbelief.
It was usually the other way around, of course, and Tony damn well knew it, but - no, Tim let it ride. After everything Tony had done, to bring him through this nightmare, this wasn't the time to be picky.
"So big brother's watching me?" he said at last, casting that big brother a suitably kid-brother grin – his eyes widening once more, in puzzled surprise, at the contrasting seriousness of Tony's reply.
"He's learning to, probie. He's trying to get through big brother 101, but- well, sometimes he messes up. He makes stupid, thoughtless mistakes. He hurts people, the special people he cares about. He over-steps the mark, simply because he doesn't know when to walk away from it. And he may not always say it when he should, Tim, but- well, he's always sorry."
Ten seconds passed. Fifteen. And Tim McGee's voice still couldn't move past the lump in his throat – the pure astonishment in his eyes gradually giving way to another, mutually needed breakthrough.
Tony DiNozzo had let all his protective defences down, and told his best friend what he needed to hear.
One of them could easily have been overcome again, too, by the significance of what the other had said. But to Tony's relief, Tim's eyes still held their familiar brightness, without the threat of further tears. And when he finally smiled back at him, Tony knew he'd turned another crucial corner in his recovery.
They still had one hell of a lot to talk about, but the friendship between them was still there.
From a moment of complete honesty, their unique bond of brotherhood had become even stronger. And if that bond was still intact, Tony knew that another, equally precious friendship had also survived.
Against all the odds, Tony knew he'd been forgiven for a moment of utter stupidity. Now he knew that, in time, Abby would be too.
As it so often did, Tim McGee's forgive-and-forget compassion astonished him. It humbled him too. Whatever abuse people threw at him – and God knew, there'd been plenty of that – this kid just took it.
He just soaked it all up, like a gawky, geeky- oh, yes! To hell with it, this was just too priceless! And he'd surely pay for it, too, eventually, but – no, right now, Tony DiNozzo just didn't care.
"So, McSpongebob," he said at last, loving the rueful grin which now blessedly returned to Tim's face – pausing for effect, choosing his moment, before gleefully presenting him with the ultimate threat.
"Have you gotten off your guilt trip too yet, or do you want me to get Gibbs to do it for you?"
To his 'uh-oh' surprise, Tim didn't reply straight away. Instead he just smiled, that wonderfully gentle smile, and shook his head.
He'd never tell Tony this aloud, of course, he'd never hear the end of it, but… no, Tony was right. This three-way guilt trip had hurt too many people. It had to stop, here and now, and that meant –
"Actually, Tony, do- um… do – do you think you could call someone else?"
Now it was Tony's turn to grin a sly, conspiratory grin as he reached into his jeans for his cellphone. Playing big brother was one thing, but probie's personal slave? Yeah, that probie could dream on.
"What, I'm your errand boy now, McLoafy?" he said at last, tossing his phone into Tim's lap – meeting the surprised stare which followed with a brotherly wink as he picked up his peace-pole.
"'sides, I need to get this stuff back before it's missed, and the nurses here are just- oh, mama!"
Realizing what he'd meant, and what he was up to, Tim tried, in vain, to smother his laughter. Where there was a pretty woman around, you could bet Tony DiNozzo would be there too. It was a miracle that he'd waited long enough to close the door behind him, and –
oh, come on, you lumbering, lovesick wuss! How hard can it be to just make one, simple phone call?
Still nervously fingering Tony's cell, Tim took a deep breath, then another - then hit speed-dial two.
"Ab-Abby? No, it's- yeah, it's- um… hi…"